When I was just shy of 17
The days were short, the nights were kings
We stayed awake to sing a song
We never thought we could do wrong
Oh yea ... and that's when I found lust ...

In the back room of a store
Our bodies pressed on to the floor
Until we lost all track of time
That's when you told me you were mine
Oh yea ... and that's when I found out ...

And now I waken from a dream
Where I keep asking you've been
I wrote a letter to you:
"My lovely girl ... Why have you been untrue?"

You're bursting at the seams
Tripping over our best dreams
I'm warning you ...
But my mind's already set ...
So I pretend

Then I became 21
I flew a plane, I held a gun
I met a girl ... oh so sweet
She took my love and went to sleep
Oh yea ... and that's when I found pain ...

On the back of a magazine
In moving pictures on a screen
I've built a world so long and wide
When she'd call, that's where I'd hide
Oh yea ... and that's when I found love ...

It's a story about a man
Trying to be the best he can
Every now and then,
He understands, the meaning of his life

Locked up in some bedroom
See him howling at the moon
He's warning you
But his mind's already set
So he pretends ...

Now most folks think its a sin
To live alone, to be seen
To steal away the time
To never ask nobody for a dime

But I'm happy to recede
Not ever to succeed
I'm warning you ...
'cause my mind's already set
I won't pretend

... and that's when I found love